Monday... But I know what the truth is.

It is so easy for us to know what the truth is and of course we need to share it. Oh, no, I'm not wrong, I know the truth.

Proverbs 18:2 (NIV) says, "Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions." The Message says, "Fools care nothing for thoughtful discourse; all they do is run off at the mouth."

Now there are many truths in life that are true but we have to believe them in faith. And no way would a smart person believe them.

Here is a story that is found in Matthew 1 that a smart person in no way would believe. They are too smart to believe it.

It starts in verse 18 (NLT). It says, "This is how Jesus the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit."

Verse 19, "Joseph, to whom she was engaged, was a righteous man" Did you know that even righteous people can jump to conclusions and share their opinions on the internet? "and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly." Now that shows that he was an honorable man and that he loved her. But he was confused. And he knew what his family and all other deeply righteous people would think. But he loved her and wanted to protect her even though it seemed that she had not been faithful. So many times when we believe we are right we can be so cruel. This is where truth and grace hit head on.

Verses 20-21, "As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. 'Joseph, son of David,' the angels said, ' do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit. And she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.'"

A very interesting situation, isn't it? "Fools find no pleasure in understanding but delight in airing their own opinions."

Psalm 138:6 says, "Though the Lord is great, he cares for the humble, but he keeps his distance from the proud."

Let's be careful in our opinions when we don't know the whole truth. Any time we point our finger at someone there are three fingers that are pointed back at us.

Now the NT in the Bible is so important but so is the OT. I have just spent some time in reading Isaiah where the prophet gave some clues as to what was going to happen. The first part of Matthew shows the link of the OT to the NT. We need to know the whole story. It is so easy for us to jump to our own conclusions without really knowing what is really happening.

There are going to be some opportunities for us during this season to share our opinions. Yes we do have truths that we live by but God also wants us to show our love for others who may not know what we know and who need our grace.

Listen, God knew what he was doing when he connected Joseph and Mary together. He really did. You see, Joseph was connect to David. That was prophesied. And he was a man who loved God and his future wife and he was opened to what was prophesied.

An angel in the night said to Joseph in verse 22-23, "All of this occured to fulfill the Lord's message through his prophet: 'Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and the will call him Immanuel, (Isa. 7:14; 8:8, 10) which means, '"God with us"'"

Verse 24, "When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife. But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus."

Listen, we must live by truth but we also need to live with grace. We may not know the whole story. So let's be careful in sharing our opinions as the whole truth. Yes, Yes! #todaysbeginning

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is!

Tuesday... It is so worth it. It really is! Look at this, Proverbs 5:21-23 (CEV) says, "The Lord sees everything, and he watches us closely. Sinners are trapped and caught by their own evil deeds. They get lost and die because of their foolishness and lack of self-control." That is true of so many. Now look at this, Luke 15:1-7 says, "Tax collectors and sinners were all crowding around to listen to Jesus. So the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law of Moses started grumbling, 'This man is friendly with sinners. He even eats with them.' Then Jesus told them this story: If any of you has 100 sheep, and one of them gets lost, what will you do? Won't you leave the 99 in the field and go look for the lost sheep until you find it? And when you find it, you will put it on your shoulder and carry it home. Then you will call in your friends and neighbors and say, 'Let's celebrate! I've found my lost sheep.' Jesus said, 'In the same way there is mo

Tuesday... Let's be smart.

Tuesday... Let's be smart. Proverbs 12:16a (CEV) says, "Losing your temper is foolish." It really is. And it is so hard to take it back. That is not smart. There are always consequence when we lose our temper and they are usually not good. Think of the last time you lost your temper at home, at your kids, at your spouse, at your pets. at your life, at where you live, at where you work. There are always repercussions and they are not good. The New Living Translation says, "A fool is quick-tempered." The Message says, "Fools have short fuses and explode all too quickly." The Amplified Bible says, "The [arrogant] fool's anger is quickly known [because he lacks self-control and common sense]." It just is not a good thing. is it? But then the rest of this verse, this proverb (CEV) says, "ignoring an insult is smart." It really is. I have striven in dealing with people to give them a benefit of doubt. They didn't mean that, they

Friday... But, can be such a beautiful word.

Friday... But, can be such a beautiful word. It really can be life changing. Look at what Paul writes in his letter to the Ephesians. In 2:1-3 (NLT) he says, "Once you were dead because of your many sins. You used to live in sin, just like the rest of the world, obeying the devil - the commander of the powers in the unseen world. He is the spirit at work in the hearts of those who refuse to obey God. All of us used to live that way, following the passionate desires and inclinations of our sinful nature. By our very nature we were subject to God's anger, just like everyone else." There it is, there it is. That is the way we are living or have lived. Dead is a definite word of finality. At least the devil thought so and maybe you do too. And then verses 4-5 starts by saying, "But", that beautiful life changing word of opportunity even though we are dead. Yes, we are subject to God's anger, "But God is so rich in mercy, and he loved us so much, that even t

Todays Beginning

Search This Blog